Mitsuko smiled ever so slightly but it was enough for Light “I guess it does make me feel better. Thinking she didn’t leave us because she wanted to. Thanks, Light”
“How is Raye by the way?”
“Oh, he left. Went back to America. I honestly don’t blame him”
--
Chief Yagami was a deeply troubled man. The cameras had only been in his house for three days but in that time he had seen just how much Light had on his young shoulders. The nightmares, lack of sleep, cramming for entrance exams. All while hunting down Kira all by himself. He was amazed Light hadn’t spontaneously combusted due to the stress of it all. “Ryuzaki,” he began speaking “How much longer must Light be kept in the dark about the surveillance? Surely informing him will lessen the burden he’s carrying”
“Not until we discover the connection Light had with Kira. I’ve had all his closest acquaintances investigated and nothing suspicious has been discovered. This means Kira must be outside Light’s regular interactions. Whether it was a one time chance encounter or an extended amount of time, Light must have met Kira at some point. Until we figure that out, Light stays oblivious” The tired father sighed regrettably “Mr Yagami. I understand your parental need to protect Light but rest assured, I’m doing everything in my power to keep your son safe”
--
Days later, Ryuzaki had to admit defeat. He and the task force had been watching Light constantly for days and the teen had given them nothing. No clues, hints, or proof of anything to do with Kira. Other than his friendship with Naomi’s younger sister, there was no viable connection to the Kira case and even that was up for debate as Naomi’s death couldn’t be ruled as a Kira killing as of yet. In the end, Ryuzaki issued for the cameras to be removed entirely.
“What? But you said –”
“Understand, Mr Yagami. Light will still be under my protection. Unfortunately, since the cameras have given us absolutely nothing to work with, I see no reason to keep them within the Yagami household”
Matsuda spoke up “But what if that’s when Kira strikes? We should at least keep some cameras up for his well being if nothing else”
“Wait a second” Ukita spoke up “What if Kira knows about the cameras somehow?” The suggestion shocked all but Ryuzaki “If Kira had connections to classified information then maybe he somehow found out about the cameras too. A receipt for the cameras, a lone file left out. Hell, he could have seen the workmen installing them by where coincidence”
“Which means our efforts were for nothing. He’s toying with us” Yagami realised angrily “He’s toying with my son”
Then, Ryuzaki announced after a long period of silently thinking “We’ve been going at this the wrong way”
“Huh? What do you mean?” asked Aizawa
“It’s obvious Light values his family over anything, his actions speak that quite clearly. But he also values trust. If Light is going to shed any valuable information on this case, he’s going to need to trust us”
--
After what seemed like forever ago, Light found himself off once again to the testing centre for his college entrance exams after a heartfelt goodbye from his mom and sister. This time though, he was a little concerned about his performance. The lack of sleep over these last few weeks had really done a number on him. Still, he could be confident he would achieve a good score.
Though his mind was somewhere else. Today was the day he saw Ryuzaki for the first time and Light couldn’t settle the butterflies in his stomach. Am I going to see him again? What do I even say? Hey Ryuzaki. Sorry for killing you last time, can we be friends for real this time? Yeah, like that’ll ever happen.
